For Forever and a Day
by SouthernBelle.Love
Summary: Draco and Neville finally have what they've always wanted - a happy, normal life. But when the Ministry starts passing laws concerning wizards with any known affiliation to the long-gone Death Eaters, Draco becomes a target. Labeled as a criminal, Draco is forced to work with the demons from his past to set things right. Final sequel to Through Their Eyes and To Have and to Hold.
1. Chapter 1

Here we go! First chapter of the third and final installment of my DracoxNeville series.

**For Forever and A Day **

(Page Break)

(Neville POV)

It was the sensation of not being able to breathe that woke me first.

Then it was the foot in my ribs.

I groaned and rolled over, realizing the same foot had knocked the breath out of me.

I cringed as the foot struck me in the small of my back, then again.

It was then that the loud, screeching cries reached my ears.

"_Neville." _Came the whine from beside me. "_Neeeviiille. _I've already gotten up _twice. _It's your turn."

Sighing, grabbing his foot and shoving it away from me, I placed my feet on the cold wooden floor. I padded out into the hallway, shivering, towards the back of our apartment and towards a white door, the volume of the cries increasing.

I walked in, yawning loudly, before moving to the dark wooden crib, scooping the small baby boy into my arms. "Shh, Toby. Shh, baby. Papa's here."

My 6 month old just continued to cry, eyes squeezed shut, tears slipping down fair cheeks, his little mouth stretched open to reveal a quivering tongue and toothless gums.

I caught the warm bottle as it flew into the room, smirking slightly at my perfectly mastered wandless magic, before gently putting the nipple in his mouth.

We had had a scare with this one. Draco had only been _two _months pregnant when he went into labor. We hadn't even known he was pregnant. Due to Draco's magic, he was developed enough to survive, but not without some difficulty. He was very small for his age and probably always would be. When he was older, he would have to use a Muggle-style inhaler. He had had more needles and tubes poked into his tiny body in the past six months then Lila and Lance had had in their almost six years or Clem in her three.

Gently bouncing my baby, I smiled thinking of all mine and Draco's beautiful children. All of our friends tease us, saying that we need to find a new hobby. Ginny and Theo had one baby boy, Timothy, Hermione and Ron had Audrey, Blaise and Pansy had Blakely and a two year old named Alexandria, Harry and Daphne had a four year old named Oliver, Crabbe and his beautiful wife, Claire, had a baby girl named Taylor and Goyle and his wife, Rebecca, had their twins, Alex and Ivan. And then Draco and I had our four. And hey, we were still young. We're probably not done quite yet.

I heard the quiet pad of feet and turned to see Draco, my t-shirt hanging down to his knees, dragging his feet down the hallway, his mouth over his mouth to cover his yawn.

"Is he back asleep already?" He whispered, coming over to stand next to me.

I nodded, pressing a kiss to his warm forehead before laying him back in his crib, pulling the blue, yellow, and green covers over his tiny body.

"You get out of bed _after_ knocking the breath out of me and digging your damn ice cold toes in my back?"

He snickered, his nose crinkling up. "I was wide ass awake. It was just your turn."

I pulled him close, kissing the tip of his nose, before gently shoving him towards the door. "Go check on your kids."

He stuck his tongue out at me as he walked out in the hallway.

Clementine, sweet, beautiful little Clementine, was fast asleep, her stuffed penguin pulled to her chest, her covers falling off of her. Draco picked up the white and purple covers, tucking her in gently.

Clem was, virtually, me. She was shy, quite. Whenever we introduced her to someone new, she would duck behind one of our legs, hiding her sweet little face. She had a head full of thick, dark brown curls, hazel eyes, and a face full of freckles.

A crash came from across the hall causing Draco to chuckle under his breath.

"Well, the twins are awake."

Draco ran across the hall, throwing their door open.

"Hey! What do you think you're doing?!"

Both the blondes, mid-jump on one of their twin beds, immediately went limp, hitting the mattress, eyes closed, snoring loudly.

"Oh." Draco said, looking back at me. "Guess I'm just hearing things. Our little angels are fast asleep." He walked over, smiling at me as they began to giggle quietly. "Well, I guess if they're asleep," He grabbed one of each of their feet, leaning down, "they won't mind if I _nibble on their toes." _

Both of them began to screech, twisting our of their father's grip, causing Draco to laugh, dropping on the bed with them. They didn't hesitate to jump on him, pressing wet, smacking kisses to his cheeks.

Where Clementine took right after me, the twins were Draco's clones. Other than their sprinkle of freckles and their dark eyes, they looked exactly like him and acted just like him. They were constantly into something, even if there wasn't really anything to get into. If they were bored and had nothing to do, they would see who could hurt the other worse. We usually stopped them before they could actually do any damage, but once Lila had managed to black her brother's eye before we noticed. Draco and I had told them both why that was wrong and that they should never do it, but it was pretty ineffective since Draco had been laughing into his hand the whole time.

"That's exactly how I was as a kid." He explained later. "If I was with Daphne or Pansy, we were all painting each other's toenails. But if I was with the guys, we were all trying to see who could do the most damage. Broke Greg's nose once." He had sounded very proud.

I walked in, taking a twin in each arm, throwing myself back on the bed, on top of Draco who let out an indignant squeak before slapping me in the forehead.

"Alright, munchkins. It's bed-time."

"But Papa! I'm not tired!" Both of them began to dig their little fingers into my armpits, trying to get out of my grasp.

"Nope. Bedtime. Get in bed."

The twins began to grumble and moan but did as they were told. Draco moved to tuck Lila in while I did the same for Lance, placing kisses on the crowns of their heads before switching to do the same to the other.

Draco and I moved to the door, flipping the lights off.

"Goodnight, you guys. We love you."

"Goodnight, Papa. Goodnight, Daddy. Love you." They spoke in unison.

Right as the door was closing, I heard Lila's tiny voice, "Papa, you're a butt-sniffer."

Draco was immediately laughing so hard he almost lost his balance. I could hear both the twins laughing just as hard.

We walked back to our bedroom, Draco's laughter never ceasing. Once we were back in bed, Draco reached up and wiped the tears from his eyes.

"I swear, that kid is just too damn much. She's gonna be a comedian."

"We shouldn't encourage her to say stuff like that."

"Oh, get the stick out of your ass, butt-sniffer." He chuckled once again. "She's six. It's cute."

"But she's going to say that to the wrong person one day. Like, a kid or something."

"And what? They're going to push her down? Lance'll kick their ass. Then she'll kick their ass. Then I'll kick their parents' asses if they have anything to say about it."

I smiled, enveloping his lips with mine.

"You know, they really do act _just like I did. _Both of them. Lila especially. They're mean as hell, but their fucking hilarious."

"Cute, too."

"Are you saying I'm cute?"

"Mmm-hmm." I pressed a kiss to his pulse point. "Cute, pretty, sexy, gorgeous, beautiful."

"Even though I'm old?"

I laughed, shaking my head. "Your twenty-four. Not really 'old'."

He laid his head on my chest, his mouth stretching into a yawn. "Will you still love me when I'm old and gross?"

"You'll never be gross. But yes. I will always love you."

He smiled. "I'll always love you, too."

"Even if I get fat?"

"That's pushing it a little."

I laughed as he smiled at me, letting me know he was, of course, just kidding.

"I'll always love you. No matter what."

I could tell by this point that he was fighting off sleep.

"Go to sleep, beautiful. You know your clones are gonna come in here and body slam us first thing in the morning."

He smiled once again, eyes softening. "One of the best parts of my day."

I smiled, kissing him. "Love you, baby."

"Love you too, butt-sniffer."

(Page Break)

There we go! First chapter up!

I want to start it off sweet and cute before everything goes to hell. :)

Reviews are Love!


	2. Chapter 2

(Neville POV)

Things had changed over the years, but not by much.

Draco and I no longer had a reason to have an alarm clock. At 6 AM, on the dot, the twins would run in to wake us up, usually resulting in at least one knobby little knee to the balls for me and a pair of scabbed up little elbows to the throat for Draco. Once we recovered, the twins having long run off, Clementine would make her way in our room, sniffling pitifully, alerting us to her "accident." Draco would give me a quick kiss before scooping her up, promising her that it was okay and that we weren't upset, and running off to clean her bed and to start running her a bath while I got dressed and checked on Toby.

This morning, as usual, Blaise, Harry, and Ron had come over for coffee before work. I greeted the three, smiling as I gently bounced Toby in one arm, the other holding his bottle to his mouth.

"Good morning." Blaise smiled, gently ruffling Toby's dark hair.

"Good morning." I replied. Jerking my head towards the coffee maker, I said, "Coffee's already made. You guys know where the mugs are."

I heard the pad of tiny feet and turned to see Clem, her dark curls still wet, walking into the kitchen, her dark eyes shy, even around her uncles.

"Morning, Sweet Pea." I smiled as she hugged my leg tightly, her little mouth stretching in a yawn.

"Mornin', Papa."

Suddenly a scream and an awful crash sounded from the back of the apartment, making us all jump to attention. However, before any of us could really react, Lila and Lance came sprinting through the kitchen buck naked.

The volume of our laughter didn't quite cover Draco's roar of, "You little MONSTERS!" as he came running after them, soaking wet, his clothes clinging to his body, his hair plastered to his head and dripping.

"They push you in the tub again?"

Draco gave me a withering look but didn't respond as he went running after the two blondes. It was only moments before he cried out, "Oh MERLIN! _NEVILLE! HELP!" _

I chuckled, handing out the slightly squirming Toby to Harry as Blaise scooped Clementine into his arms, planting a kiss on the crown of her head, before following the yelling.

Draco had one of the twins under his arm and was trying to drag the other out from under the couch with his free hand.

"You two are _taking a bath!_ You didn't take one last night so you _have _to take one this morning!"

Without a word, I lifted the couch up slightly with one hand grabbed Lila with the other, holding her tightly as she began to scream and squirm.

We dragged them into the bathroom and deposited them into the tub where they sat with their pale arms crossed and their bottom lips poked out.

"No fair." They grumbled.

Draco sighed, turning to me. "Thank you, you big hunk-a-man."

I leaned down, pushing his platinum blonde hair out of his face before pressing my lips to his. "I'll put Toby in his walker and bring him and Clem in here with you guys."

"Alright." He smiled, kissing me again. "I love you."

"I love you, too, baby."

(Harry's POV)

It seems like after working at the same place, in the same office, for so long, that we would get sick of our jobs. But we didn't. None of us did. Though I'm sure all of us would rather stay at home in bed with our significant others and our beautiful children, I think all of us were pretty content.

I poked my head in Neville's office and laughed, seeing the piles and piles of paperwork on his desk.

"What is all of_ this_?"

"Azkaban." He grumbled.

A little less than a week ago, there had been an attempted breakout at the prison. The prisoners were locked back up, but there were so many searches that needed paperwork and the forms for all the new charms set on the place. Poor Neville got stuck with it all.

He laid down the paper before rubbing his temples, giving me a tight smile. "Did you need something?"

"Yeah, actually. Shacklebolt called a meeting. Ten minutes."

"Great."

(Next Part)

It was strange that not everyone had been called in. It was just me, Neville, Blaise, Crabbe, and Goyle. Ron hadn't been alerted. If we were being given a new assignment, Ron definitely would've been involved. So none of us had a clue why we were there.

Shacklebolt had been silent, fumbling his words, like he was trying to find the right way to say what he was trying to say.

"Azkaban is… taking stricter measures after the attempted breakout."

"Oh, please don't tell us you're going to ask us to be guards." Blaise sighed, sinking in his seat.

"No. It's… the prisoners that made the attempt were found to have been using magic to get out of their cells. They think that someone – someone that had made a visit or got into the prison some other way – could have given them a wand or an incantation or _something _to use."

"Any leads?"

"No. None. But it had to have been someone with the ability for Dark Magic. Two of the guards had been hit with a spell that we've only seen once – from the Death Eaters. During the war."

"So we're going to interrogate the convicted Death Eaters?" I asked, already dreading it.

"Once again, no." He sighed. "That measures already been taken. And we found nothing."

"Why have we not been alerted about this?" Neville asked, brow furrowed. "I've been on this since it happened."

"What's going on is very confidential. We don't want to start a panic."

"Well what's the next step?"

"We are going to interrogate those who have or had any affiliation with the Death Eaters."

There was an uncomfortable silence.

"Wait." Crabbe said, anger evident in his eyes. "You don't mean-,"

"We will have to interrogate you two." He sighed, addressing Crabbe and Goyle. "As well as you Blaise. And we'll have to speak to Pansy, Draco, and Daphne as well."

"This is _ridiculous!" _Neville suddenly boomed. "You know as well as I do that Lucius Malfoy was a spy for the Light! Draco fought on our side for Merlin's sake! He almost died to save me!"

"It's just a precaution, Neville." Shacklebolt looked exhausted.

"And why are Daphne and Pansy a part of this?" I snapped. "They don't have an affiliation with the Death Eaters at all! Their parents weren't even accused!"

"With parent's loyalties were questionable." It sounded like he had read this somewhere, like he was just reciting something. "I'm sorry. But they're my orders and now their yours.

"You're significant others have already received notice of when their interrogations will be. Blaise, yours will be tomorrow. Eight o'clock. Vincent, you'll be after him, then Draco will be after that. The rest will be on later days."

"This is ridiculous." Neville spat again, standing from his seat and storming out.

"Just make things go smoothly." Shacklebolt begged us. "It's just a precaution."

(Neville POV)

I stood in the bathroom doorway, watching Draco give Clementine a bath the next morning. He was pulling faces at her – crossing his eyes, sticking out this tongue, gnashing his teeth – before smiling brightly at her as she giggled hysterically.

When I had gotten home from work the previous night, I had found Draco sitting in a chair in the kitchen, his knees pulled to his chest, tears slipping down his cheeks. His notice of his interrogation sat on the table.

"Malfoy's not a very popular name with the Ministry, even if we didn't do anything wrong." He had whimpered as I took him in my arms. "What if they try to say that I did something? What if they take me to Azkaban? M-my babies won't understand. They won't…" He had trailed off into sobs, shaking harshly. I had just held him tighter, promising that everything was okay, telling him what Shacklebolt had told us – it's just a precaution.

"And your name isn't Malfoy." I had said with a smile. "You're name's Longbottom. The same as a seasoned Auror who's taken down many wanted criminals both with and without teams. The same as your four beautiful children. You're going to be fine baby."

He hadn't responded.

We took the kids to the Burrow to stay for the day, until Draco's interrogation was over. They were promising the same things I was, but it didn't seem to mean much to Draco. He was terrified.

He had asked for alone time with the kids before we left. He hugged the twins for five minutes apiece, kissing the crowns of both of their heads. He had held Clementine, whispering sweetly to her. I couldn't hear a word he had said, but Clementine had looked worried, like she knew the loving words were like a goodbye.

But it was when he had held Toby that my heart broke. He was singing him a soft lullaby – "Baby Mine" – and Toby had fallen asleep in his arms. He had handed him off to Molly, but then quickly snatched him back and had lost him composure completely, bursting into wracking sobs. He had held the now crying baby tightly, trying to soothe him, but couldn't stop his own sobbing.

I had taken Toby from him and handed him back to Molly, telling Draco we had to go and, just for a split second, he _hated _me. I could see it in his eyes. But I knew it was just his emotions reaching their peak.

Now the two of us sat in the room outside the interrogation room, our fingers intertwined, and Draco was shaking like a leaf. He hadn't spoken a word to me since I had made him give Toby back to Molly.

"Baby, everything's going to be okay."

"But what if it isn't?" He snapped. "What if they put me in prison? What if Graham and Val find me in there and decide get what they feel they deserve?"

After all these years, Draco still had nightmares about the two of them. He would wake in a cold sweat, sometimes screaming, always crying. They had been getting worse here lately.

The door opened and Crabbe stepped out. He looked tired but content other than that.

"It's fine, Dray." He promised, ruffling the blonde's hair. "They just ask a few questions. Where were you on this date and this time. Do you know the prisoners that attempted escape on a personal level. That sort of thing."

"Who tried to escape?"

"They wouldn't say. They just wanted to see my reaction, I guess."

Draco nodded, swallowing thickly.

"Everything's fine." Crabbe promised, giving him a gentle smile. "Just don't freak out."

He just nodded once again before pressing a long, sweet kiss to my lips.

"I love you." He whispered, his lips trembling, his eyelashes wet with tears.

He walked into the room without giving me a chance to respond.

(Page Break)

Oh, Lord, I'm sorry! I haven't updated in so long! I've wanted to, really I have, but I am _so _exhausted here lately.

I'm going to start trying to update at least once every weekend again. I really am sorry:(

And how would you guys feel about a prequel to this series? How the war went down, starting from where Draco and Val broke up? Let me know what you think :)

Reviews are Love!


	3. Chapter 3

(Neville POV)

Draco was only in the interrogation room for, at the most, ten minutes. I was happy when the door opened and he walked out, unharmed, not in chains. Everyone else – Blaise, Crabbe, Goyle, Ron, Harry – seemed to breathe a sigh of relief as well. They had had the same fears we had.

But it was quickly replaced with concern as we saw the look on his face. He was shaken. His face was wet with tears. His hair was down in his face due to his head being bowed.

"Draco?" I moved forward, getting a look in the room before the door shut. There were three men. All were watching Draco with narrowed eyes, talking in hushed whispers. "Draco, baby, what just happened?"

"I want to go home. I just want to get the kids and go home."

"Draco, what-,"

"Neville, _please." _

"Alright." I whispered, taking him in my arms. "Alright, we can go home."

The others watched us, looking uneasy.

Blaise took a step forward. "Dray?"

The blonde just shook his head, sniffing lightly. "I just want to go home."

(Draco POV)

It was 3 am. Three in the morning and I couldn't even close my eyes, much less think about sleeping.

They wanted to do another interrogation tomorrow. 9 am.

Neville sat next to me, just watching me. His eyebrows were furrowed, the corners of his mouth turned downwards.

"Are you going to tell me what happened?"

I turned up my cup once again, taking a long drink of my tea, finishing it off. I looked down at the tea leaves. An alligator. The dark remains looked like a bloody alligator.

"Ruin. Personal disaster. Imminent catastrophe."

"What?"

"My tea leaves." I laid my cup down on the table.

"Draco. Harry's tea leaves, _everytime, _predicted he was going to die."

"He _did." _

"Well, technically, yes."

"Well, _technically, _I have ruin, disaster, and catastrophe in my near future."

"Draco, stop."

"They accused me of doing it, Neville."

He blanched, lowering his own cup from his lips. "What do you mean they _accused _you?"

"I mean they accused me. They said that me having personal ties to the ones who tried to escape all pointed in one direction."

"It was…"

"Graham, Christian, and Val. They're all working together now." I pulled my knees up in my chair, resting my chin on them. "It's funny though. At first I thought they were trying to get out to get to us. But then I realized – this is all part of their plans. Graham, despite his brutish nature, is very intelligent. It's odd that so many of his plans failed in school. His anger and possessiveness got in the way. But he's had time to plan. Almost seven years. Between his intelligence and Val's mischievous nature, they would get away with escaping. They wanted to get caught. They wanted their dark magic to be traced.

"They didn't want out. They want to bring me in."

Neville looked at me, trying to hide the horror on his face. "Baby, you… you were just nervous. They probably thought that that was suspicious. They don't have any proof you did it."

"They don't _need _any, Neville." I sighed, running my fingers through my hair. "It's their word against mine. And I don't care what position you or Harry or Blaise hold. If they want to put me in prison, they will." I laid my forehead on my knees, feeling my tears building. "Pansy didn't know anything. She called me after dinner. They cancelled her interrogation. And Daphne's. They cancelled all the other interrogations. They're pinning it on me."

Neville was silent. He didn't know what to say.

I wasn't sure I wanted him to say anything.

"Dray, let's just… let's just go to bed. You need your sleep."

"I _can't, _Neville." I snapped, angry. "I _can't _sleep. I can't even close my eyes without seeing one of them on top of me or hearing them growling threats at me or feeling them pawing at me, tearing at me." The tears finally poured over. "I'm so tired, but I can't sleep even if I try."

I suddenly felt as one of Neville's arms wrapped under my knees, the other under my back, and he was carrying me towards our bedroom.

I didn't fight. I didn't feel like fighting him anymore. I just wrapped my arms around his neck, tucking my head into the soft, warm crook of his neck.

He laid me down on our bed before walking into the bathroom. I sat up, unsure of what he was doing, in time for him to come back, holding two phials in his hands.

"What are those?" I asked.

"A sleeping potion, and a Dreamless-Sleep. You need your rest." He uncorked one but stopped when I put my hand up. "What is it baby?"

"Can I take those later?" I climbed to my knees, moving to the end of the bed, pulling him down by his shirt. "I don't want to go straight to sleep."

He looked at me, caught in between a smile and his concerned frown.

"You can smile. I'm trying to be sexy."

Neville let out a laugh, laying his hands on my waist. "You don't have to try. You never stop."

I laughed, but I didn't feel it. I wasn't fooling him, I could tell. But he leaned down and kissed me anyway. He kissed me like he always did. We made love like we always did. I fell asleep in his arms like I always did.

I didn't want anything to change.

(Neville POV)

For the first time in a while, I wasn't dreaming at all. I was just in a deep, black, peaceful sleep.

That's why, when I was ripped out of my sleep, I was completely confused.

Until the piercing scream reached my ears.

I shot into a sitting position, looking towards the blonde to my left. He had rolled out of my grasp and laid on his back, grasping the sheets in his fists. His back was arched off the bed. His eyes were clenched shut, his mouth stretched open, tears pouring down his pale cheeks. The scream leaving his throat made my stomach clench, made me feel nauseous. I grabbed the blonde up in my arms, squeezing him against me.

"Draco, sweetheart, wake up. You're okay. You're okay. You're with me. You're okay."

His screamed faltered and his eyes shot open. He looked at me in complete terror before he just shut his eyes against, sobs wracking his entire body.

I rocked slowly, kissing his sweat-soaked hair. "You're okay. Baby, you're still with me. You're okay."

"Papa?"

I looked up at the doorway and saw the twins and Clementine standing there. All of them looked terrified, tears in their eyes.

"It's okay, guys. Everything's okay. Daddy just had a bad dream. It's okay."

None of them moved. They all looked on at their father – sobbing, shaking, soaked in sweat – in fear.

"Everything's okay. I promise. Just go back to bed, okay guys? You need your sleep."

They all looked at us for a moment longer before Lance grabbed his sisters' hands, leading them down the hall.

I looked at the nightstand and realized that Draco had never taken the potions – we had just fallen asleep. I grabbed both the phials and lifted Draco's chin, making him drink them. Within moments, the blonde was back asleep. I grabbed my t-shirt off the floor, wiping away his sweat and tears.

(Lance POV)

"Is Daddy okay?"

"I don't know, Clem."

"You always know."

"Well, I don't this time."

Lila was being quiet. Lila was never quiet. Never ever.

"Is Daddy sick?"

"I don't _know, _Clem."

We laid on my bed, under the covers. Clem was crying. Clem cried a lot. But Lila was crying too. Lila never cries. Never ever. Not unless I punch her too hard. I hugged them both like I always did when they cried.

Maybe Daddy was sick. Him and Papa had been sad lately. Papa looked really tired and Daddy hadn't talked all day. Except for when he had been kissing on us and telling us he loved us with all his heart.

Our door creaked open and Papa walked in quietly, not flipping the lights on.

"You guys awake?"

"Yeah,"

"Papa, is Daddy gonna die?"

Papa looked at Clem, his mouth falling open. "What? Clem, where would you get an idea like that?"

"Daddy's sick. Isn't he? That's why you're both so sad." Lila wiped the tears from her cheeks.

"No, you're Daddy's not sick."

"Then what's wrong?"

Papa ran his hands through his hair, pressing his lips together like he did when we were about to get in trouble. "Frust-rated" he called it. "There's some things you guys don't know about your Daddy that you wouldn't understand until you're older. He's had some stuff happen to him – bad stuff – that gives him bad dreams sometimes. They've gotten bad lately."

"Is it because of his 'in-tear-oh-gay-shon'?" I asked, trying out the word I had heard this morning.

"How do you know about that?"

"I heard Grammpa Arthur say it. He said they were gonna give Daddy a hard time."

"No, that's not anything you guys need to worry about. It's stuff from a long time ago. Before me and Daddy were even married. Before any of you guys were born. And everything's gonna be okay. Promise. Now you guys get some sleep. Your cousin Aubrey's coming over to babysit tomorrow and I know she wears you guys out."

None of us said anything.

"Goodnight you guys. I love you. Your daddy loves you too."

"Love you, Papa."

The lights shut off and I felt Lila grab one of my hands and Clem grab the other.

(Neville POV)

"How long are you guys going to be out?"

Oddly enough, Aubrey looked just like her adoptive mother. Her once gentle curls had become a wild mass around her shoulders. She was tall and thin with dark eyes and cupid's bow lips. At fourteen, she could easily pass for a seventh year.

"I really don't know. It depends on how long the interrogation goes. But you know how we do things around here."

She nodded, then looked towards the bathroom door as the shower cut off. "Do you think they're going to put him in prison?"

I could see the fear in her eyes as she asked. Through the years, she and Draco had only grown closer. She came over at least twice a week and I would find them and the kids baking or painting or some other fun little activity. They were always laughing and chasing each other, flinging paint or flour.

"No. He's not going to prison. No matter what happens today, he's not going to prison."

She nodded, but still looked worried, pulling at one of her frizzy curls.

Draco came out only moments later, dried and dressed.

"You look beautiful." I whispered, pressing a kiss to his hair.

He just sighed, looking at Aubrey. "They're still asleep so they'll need a bath. Give them whatever for breakfast and lunch. We'll be home in time for dinner."

It was relieving to hear him say that.

Draco hugged her, pressing a kiss to her cheek. "Thanks again for babysitting."

"No problem." She grinned. "And get that look off your face. Everything's going to be fine."

Draco gave her a small smile. "Well, I'm glad you feel that way. And keep your feet off my furniture. I always find scuff marks on the table from your Converse. You're just like your father." The smile disappeared. "And give them all my love."

(Draco POV)

The men were just walking around the room, not saying anything.

I looked at the dark wooden table in front of me, honestly a little afraid to look anywhere else.

"You do realize that this is basically just a formality now, right Mr. Malfoy?"

"Longbottom." I shot off without thinking.

"Excuse me?"

I could feel the heat rise in my cheeks. "Longbottom. My name's Longbottom. Has been for almost seven years."

Has it really been that long?

"Of course. Excuse me."

"What do you mean a formality?"

"I mean that, at this point, all evidence points to you."

My heart dropped. I could feel a cold sweat coming one. "What _evidence_?"

"Your past with the inmates in question."

"But I-,"

"You dated two of the three inmates. You told us yourself."

"I also mentioned that I was the one that put them in there after one beat me to near unconsciousness every chance he got and he and the other made several attempts – one being successful – to rape me and the other kidnapped me and stabbed me. What possible reason would I have for trying to break them out?"

"We'll have to question them to find that out."

"Did you not listen to a word I _just said? I put them in there._ They want me in there too! They want the chance to tear me apart!"

"We're going to have to ask that you calm down, Mr. Malfoy."

"_Longbottom!" _I screeched without thinking. "My _fucking name _is _LONGBOTTOM!"_

Suddenly one of the men grabbed me, pulling me out of my chair, bending me over the table, slamming my head against the thick wood. "Mr. Longbottom, you're under arrest for aiding three convicted criminals in an attempted prison breech."

"I _didn't!" _

Oh, God. No. This isn't happening. It can't be.

The tears began to fall. I couldn't control how I was shaking or my breathing.

"You will be placed in a holding cell until your trial. If convicted, you will be transported to Azkaban to serve your sentence."

I could hear as one of them cast an enchantment, making a force I couldn't see bind my arms.

"If convicted, you will be given a life sentence."

I was having a panic attack. It had been years since I had had a serious attack and I had forgotten how to handle them.

"Please, I didn't. I didn't. Oh, God. Oh, Merlin. Please, I didn't do anything. _Please." _

They began to pull me out of the office.

My heart was pounding in my ears. My head felt like it was going to explode.

"_Neville!" _I cried, my voice cracking through my tears. "_Neville!" _

Neville, Greg, Vince, Blaise, Theo, and Ron all jumped to their feet.

They ran over, but the men wouldn't stop pulling me away from them, through the crowded hallway.

"Wait! Stop! _Please!"_

The men stopped, looking at the group of men rushing over.

"Sirs, I'm sorry, but we can't explain the circumstances to you. We have to take Mr. Longbottom to a holding cell. You can attend his trial to find out the details. We will release the date soon."

"No, _please!_ I'm his husband! I can tell you that he _didn't do this. _He was at home with our _four children _and with me. There's no way he could've done this."

"You can give an alibi at the trial. You'll also want to find a lawyer for his case."

They began to drag me away again.

"_NEVILLE!" _

"Draco, baby, it's okay! It's okay! Everything's going to be fine." He rushed forward, stopping them to cup my cheeks and kiss me. "We're going to figure this out, baby. I promise."

The men dragged me to one of the elevators.

I couldn't control the sobs leaving my throats or the way I was shaking uncontrollably.

"Neville, please don't let them do this. Please. _Please. _I just want to go home. _Take me home. Please?"_

"I'll figure this out. I promise. I'll figure this out. I love you."

I saw the tears well in his eyes before the doors of the elevator shut.

And my world began to crumble.

(Page Break)

Alright, so this one's a little sad.

It's not going to get too much better, I promise. This one's going to be pretty dark if it goes as planned.

And sorry for not updating for so long. Things have been so busy lately.

Reviews are Love!


	4. Author's Note - NOT A REAL UPDATE

Sorry for the tease.

I just wanted to let you guys know, because of a question I got in a review, that _YES, THIS STORY WILL DEFINITELY BE FINISHED. _There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that I will finish it and I will update soon.

However, it is also April of my senior year of high school and my life is pretty crazy right now. Prom is tomorrow, my project presentation for the honor seal was this past week, and I've got so much junk coming up. It's a pretty crazy time in my life right now.

However, I'm working on an update as we speak and, hopefully, I'll have it up by next weekend. Don't give up on me yet! Things are just about to get interesting!

All My Love,


	5. Chapter 4

(Aubrey POV)

Neville and Draco underestimated their kids. I had babysat a lot, and they were never this quiet. They knew something was wrong.

Clem, the little angel of the bunch, was silently brushing her doll's hair, not saying a word since she had woken up. Lila, usually the one to already be covered in paint or food and to have come close to knocking mine or her brother's teeth out, was sitting on the couch, her hands in her lap, silent. Lance, mischievous, though not nearly as much as his twin, laid on his stomach, looking at me as though he wanted to ask a question but was too afraid to do so. Even little Toby, fast asleep in my arms, had seemed irregularly quiet today. They definitely knew something was up.

"Brey?"

I looked at Lance, his little brow furrowed, his lips turned down at the corners. "Yeah, sweetie?"

"What's wrong with Daddy? I know you'll tell us the truth."

"Nothing's wrong with your Daddy, Lance. They're just busy."

He sighed, laying his blonde head on his hands. "Maybe you won't tell us the truth."

I heard the front door open and I said a silent prayer that it would be Neville _and _Draco, that it wouldn't be just Neville standing in the doorway, his face in his hands leaning against the wall, that haunted look in his eyes.

I took a deep breath and forced myself to turn and was shocked to see not Draco or Neville, but my dad.

"Daddy?"

He looked up at me and I felt my heart drop. He had exactly the look I was hoping Neville wouldn't have.

He ran a hand through his hair and sighed. "Hi, sweetheart. Get the kids together, okay? You guys are going to go to grandma's and grandpa's for the rest of the day."

"Why?" I was almost afraid of the answer.

"I…" He sighed once again. He looked tired. He looked older. "I'll explain when the kids can't hear."

Lila and Lance were both immediately at attention, wanting information. When my dad wouldn't give it up, I watched, worried as Lila's face began to turn a horrendous shade of red, her lips screwed up, tears in her eyes.

"I." Gasp. "Want." Sob. "My." Whimper. "_DADDY!" _

The little girl began to wail, sitting down hard, tears pouring down her cheeks. Clem was startled by her sister's reaction and began to cry too. Toby jerked awake in my arms, pitiful screams leaving his lips. Lance looked at a loss, trying to console his sisters by taking one of their hands in each of his, tears burning in his own eyes.

My dad looked at me, his eyes wide. "I don't think we're going to fool them any."

(Draco POV)

My breathing was uneven.

My head felt like it was going to explode.

The room was small and dark. It smelled like mold and age.

There were so many other people in the room it seemed.

One, two, three, four.

Only four?

One, two, three, four.

Only four.

I felt like I was losing my mind.

"Hey, beautiful. What are you in for?"

My head was between my knees, drawn up to my chest. I thought that maybe, just maybe, the position would deter the men from trying to talk to me. Apparently not.

"I just want to be left alone."

"Aw, c'mon. Can't be so bad."

"Leave me alone. Please."

I felt a hand on my shoulder, rubbing the skin that seemed so sore and tight.

I jerked my head up, giving the man with graying hair the nastiest look I could muster. "Leave. Me. _Alone."_

His hand was suddenly squeezing instead of rubbing. "Listen, you little bitch-,"

Graham. Nothing but Graham flashing through my head. Nothing but fists and boot-powered kicks and ripping and tearing and biting and laughing.

I didn't realize what had happened – why the man was on the ground, why everyone was looking at me now, why there was blood dripping from his lip – until I felt the dull thud in my knuckles.

I really should've felt proud of myself, but I didn't. I was just scared. I couldn't even remember punching this guy in the face.

I just put my face back into my knees.

Atleast everyone left me alone after that.

(Hermione POV)

I couldn't even bring myself to look at Neville.

I was sad and I was worried for Draco. I knew he couldn't be handling any of this well. The blonde didn't handle _any _stress well and this wasn't exactly which color tablecloths to get for the twins' birthday party.

Neville sat with his face in his hands, unmoving.

"Neville, we will figure this out."

"They never set court dates for the _day after_, Hermione. You know that. They've already got him pinned. They're going to send him to Azkaban. They're going to kill him, Hermione."

I was going over all the information for the third time. Neville couldn't account for Draco's location. The attempted break out had happened at 1:32 PM while Neville was at work. He had been at home with the kids but there was no definite proof and the judge wouldn't take the word of two six year olds, nor would they listen to his friends' excuse of, "He wouldn't just leave them alone."

I looked over at all the others – Ron, Blaise, Theo, Harry, Crabbe, Goyle – and they all looked just as hopeless as Neville did.

"I don't know how to explain this to the kids." Neville looked up, tears in his eyes. "How am I supposed to tell them that their daddy, the man they love so _damn _much who holds them when they cry and kisses their cuts and scrapes and bakes them cookies and cuddles them during thunderstorms and loves them more than anything else in the world is just… never coming home? How am I supposed to tell them that?"

"You won't have to, Neville." I said forcefully. "We're going to find something to prove him innocent. Just trust me on that."

He just gave a short nod.

I looked through the information one last time.

This was a losing battle.

(Neville POV)

I went home to an empty house that night. The kids were staying with the Weasleys tonight. Draco was being held in some dank cell somewhere.

The next morning, I woke up, confused out of my mind, and everything hit me at once. And it took everything I had to not just lay there and cry.

I forced myself up, made my coffee, took a shower, drank my coffee, put on my best suit. But the tie was what did it. I went through the motions until then. It was then that it hit me that I couldn't tie this damn thing. In complete and utter frustration, I threw it, the slow rate and no sound as it hit the floor was very unsatisfying.

So I threw my hair brush. Then my toothbrush. Finally, I punched the mirror.

Now that was satisfying.

Shards flew in all directions, the crash was deafening, the pain in my hand distracted me, if only momentarily.

I cleaned up my mess, my thoughts clearing, almost embarrassed of the way I had just acted.

I needed to be strong for today. I would see Draco and he would need me to be a support, an anchor. He didn't need me breaking down too.

I left the tie on the floor.

The usual trek to work seemed three times as long.

Hermione was already in my office by the time I got there, stacks and stacks of papers in her hands.

Her eyes were swollen, there were dark bags under them. She hadn't slept well if she had at all.

But the second she saw me, her eyes lit up.

"I told you I would figure this out, Neville! They _can't _convict him. The magical signature they found _is _similar to his, but it's not _his!" _

I looked at her, but genuinely could not react. She had to be mistaken. This couldn't all just… work itself out. It just wasn't rational.

She grabbed my arm and dragged me in the office. Waving her wand, two streams of light appeared, thin and brightly colored. I worked with these a lot, pinning them against the suspected criminals.

"First of all, look at the colors. They're not even close."

The colors were close, until you looked at them right next to each other. Draco's was a light, silvery blue, almost the same shade as his eyes. The imposter strand carried a dulled lavender in the mix, not even close to his eyes.

"Then look at this. See where Draco's dips right here?" The stand dipped at the end, in a smooth, round arc. The imposter dipped as well, but sharply with a tight angle. "However tried to pin this on him did a decent job, good enough so that they could be compared when studied separately, but it seems like the agents here didn't take the time to study them side by side."

"He didn't do it." I felt the grin tugging at my lips. "They can't convict him."

"They can't convict him!"

I threw my arms around Hermione, hugging her tightly, pressing a kiss to her forehead. "You are a gift from Heaven, I swear."

She laughed. "Don't flatter me too much. Now, let's hurry. We can get this to the council before the hearing even begins and get him out of here and in his own bed. I'm sure Azkaban is tearing him apart." Her eyes were sad as she said it.

"Wait. Azkaban?"

Her eyes only got sadder. "They didn't tell you?" She sighed. "Of course not. He "attacked" one of the other prisoners in the holding cell. I mean, yeah, from what I saw Draco got at him pretty good. There were claw marks across his face and bruises and who knows what else, but the guy was being held on trial in two days for attempted rape and murder. But, of course, they didn't stop to think that he might've been defending himself."

I just sighed, putting my face in my hands. I just wanted to hold him, to kiss him, and to never let go of him again. He had had to face enough. Why should this be added to the list of things he's already had to face? Especially now that everything was supposed to be getting better?

Hermione grabbed my hand, making me look at her. "But everything's going to be better in about ten minutes. Hell, you guys can even sue and make sure that this never happens to him again."

"We will." I grumbled. "No one's touching him again."

(Draco POV)

I thought that Azkaban would be loud, filled with the screaming of its insane inmates and criminals yelling their death threats.

Now that I was here, I wish that it was that way.

It was quiet. Way too quiet. Not a sound but the steady drip of water falling from the ceiling.

There were no guards to be seen. Two had dragged me in here, thrown me to the ground, and then stomped away without a word.

My head hurt, my eyes were swollen, and my lip was busted.

I hadn't meant to attack the man. But he had kept on and on, pushing and poking and teasing and pulling and saying so many inappropriate things. I had snapped and attacked him and, before I knew it, I was being dragged in here. I couldn't even remember attacking him. Not really. I remember clawing at him, tearing at him, screaming for him to get away from me. But I don't remember actually touching him.

Huddled in the corner, I just put my head between my knees and tried to breathe.

"Draco."

I froze.

I knew that voice.

_No. _

"Draco! Get the fuck up."

_No. Merlin, go away. _Please _go away. _

I felt rough hands jerking me to my feet. I kept my eyes closed.

"Boys, I don't think he's too happy to see us."

There was snickering from the doorway.

I hand laid on my waist, gripping it roughly, moving down to my hip. His grip would leave bruises.

"Open your eyes. I want to see the fear in them."

When I didn't, I felt myself roughly thrown to the floor, not trying to catch myself.

Before I had time to readjust, I was pulled back to my feet and a voice whispered cruelly in my ear, "Open your fucking eyes."

And I did.

The door to my cell stood wide open. Two figures stood there, both with little hair, their skin pallid and grayish in color.

Christian Darkboe hadn't changed. Not at all. His eyes were still unfocused. His mouth still hung open like an overheated dog. His face was littered with scars which only managed to make him all the more terrifying – a maniac with nothing to lose.

But looking at the man next to him…

Merlin. Val.

It almost made my heart hurt to look at him.

His shaggy hair was gone, replaced by a short, spiky cut. His face was thin, his eyes were hooded. There was no mirth in his eyes anymore, no laughter. None of that shine remained. He just looked angry, vengeful. Murderous.

But the final member of their trio, the one I could bring myself to look at, the one that was bringing back a million nightmares just by breathing in my ear broke my concentration.

"They're going to give you the kiss, you know. Helping prisoners escape? Especially dangerous ones who were put into prison for raping and beating and torturing you? They think you're fucking nuts. And, based on how you're acting, I think they may be right."

Lila and Lance and Clem and Toby. Think of them. You're okay and you're going to see them soon because Neville will be here just like he always is and he'll save you and you'll get to go home and see your babies.

"They're coming right now. They're going to collect you for your trial and when they convict you, and they will, you'll be given the kiss immediately."

Darkboe's cackling filled my eyes, laced with the dark undertone of Val's chuckle.

Even his laugh wasn't the same.

"But, I'm going to give you an option. You can stay here and rot as a soulless corpse, which suits me just fine, or," he bit against my neck, causing me to cry out, "you can come with us. We'll all hide until this is over. You just have to do whatever we say."

And, for the first time in three days, I had a moment of clarity.

Die or die. That's the choices he was giving me.

But, without a wand, I couldn't fight off Dementors or guards.

But I could fight them. I could try. I could outsmart them, run away, hide, find Neville, something, anything.

They, ironically enough were giving me a chance.

"I'll go with you."

The man behind me laughed loud and hard. "And you heard your end of the deal, right? _Whatever _we say."

"Whatever you say."

He grabbed the top of my arm, rough, harsh, dragging me towards the door.

I still couldn't make myself look at him.

"Hear that boys? We've got ourselves a new fuck toy."

At their laughter, I felt my heart sink. What was I doing?

"His cell's down this way." A man's voice rang through the corridor.

They were coming to get me. It was time for my trial.

The two men in front of me took off full speed, looking like animals the way they moved.

I was shoved forward with a rough hand.

"Run."

And I did.

My feet hit the ground hard, tearing at my bare feet.

But I had to get away. I didn't know where I was going or what was going to happen but I couldn't stay here.

"Hey!" The guard yelled. "Get them!"

Feet were pounding the floor behind me, causing my heart to race faster and faster.

"Draco?!"

If I had been in my right mind, I would've stopped. I would've turned and rushed into Neville's arms and held on tightly and never let go.

But I wasn't. I wasn't in my right mind. I was terrified, confused.

"DRACO! STOP!"

Neville was screaming after me. I could tell he was running with the guards. But I had to get away. I couldn't let him see me killed. He couldn't. I had to fight for us. He would understand when I was back with him.

Suddenly, the warm morning sun hit me, blinding me, and I realized that the four of us were outside, overlooking the rolling, freezing waters below.

The guards were gaining.

"Draco! Stop! Please! We've got this figured out! We can go home!"

He was lying.

"What are we going to do?" Darkboe's voice was like nails on a chalkboard – screeching and unpleasant.

"We're going to jump."

And Darkboe did without a second thought.

"How is jumping going to get us anywhere?!" Val demanded.

His voice hadn't changed. It was the same.

"Just fucking jump."

And Val followed orders.

My heart was racing. I couldn't catch my breath. My entire body hurt.

I looked at Graham for the first time.

His eyes were piercing. His frame was larger than I remembered. He towered over me. Deep scars ran down the side of his face.

I remembered doing that to him.

"DRACO! STOP! PLEASE!"

"Jump."

And I did.


	6. Chapter 5

(Neville POV)

I couldn't breathe.

The only thing I could hear was my heart pounding.

He had been running, away from me, away from safety, away from home…

And then he was just gone. Jumped off the edge. He was…

Gone.

I ran to the edge, falling to my knees.

_God. No. _

"Get men down there! Now!" The men around me looked dumbfounded. The had probably never dealt with this situation before. "NOW!"

There was something in the water. Something I couldn't quite make out. They were long, dark shapes, moving with the water.

There was a shock of white on one where the others were dark.

Bodies.

They were bodies.

I fell back, moving away from the edge, away from the water, away from the bodies as quickly as I could.

"Neville!"

I knew it was Hermione and Harry running up to me – Hermione had come to present the information, Harry as an escort – but I couldn't even make myself look at them.

_Had that been what he was trying to achieve? To kill himself? _

Hermione's hand was on my shoulder, but the second she touched me, I jerked away, barely holding myself up, retching onto the damp, cold stone.

"Oh, Merlin." Harry was standing on the edge, his hands in his hair, his voice shaking.

"What happened?" Hermione was beginning to sound panicked. "Neville, what happened?!"

I was dry heaving, my body shaking. Sweat was pouring down my face.

I couldn't breathe.

"No. Hermione, don't look. Don't look."

I couldn't breathe.

"Oh, my… Oh, Merlin. Oh, no, no, no."

I couldn't _breathe. _

_He's dead. He's dead. _

_He's dead. _

(Harry POV)

They sent out men in boats to gather the bodies.

They were dead.

All four of them.

They ruled that the impact had definitely killed them, most likely immediately. Which was sort of a comfort, if nothing else.

They asked Neville to identify the body and the poor man had just sat there, his face in his hands.

I had offered instead, seeing that Hermione was turning green at the prospect.

And it was him. It was definitely him. His eyes were closed, his lips were slightly parted. He was laid next to the other three men who he had died with – the men that he had been the bane of his existence.

It was ironic that the men he was lost so much sleep over were now the men that he would…

I couldn't finish that thought.

Hermione had to speak to the coroners and they agreed to release his body as they had been going to release him anyway. They wouldn't count the attempted escape against him.

His body was taken to St. Mungo's where it could then be picked up for the funeral.

None of us went into work the next few days.

Blaise, Ron, and I explained what had happened to Lila, Lance, and Clementine, in the gentlest way we could. Of course we hadn't explained the circumstances, just that…

He was gone.

They hadn't taken in well. None of them would come out of their room, the door locked. Eventually, Neville had come out of his own room, grabbed up Toby, holding him close, and went into the others' room, curling up on the bed with his children, and we felt okay to leave.

We didn't see anyone until the day of the funeral and when we did, we all realized how hard this was hitting all of us.

No one had slept, not even the children. Everyone was pale and exhausted. Neville and Draco's children looked groomed, bathed, and fed, but Neville didn't. Well, bathed, yes. He was wearing a good suit. But his face was sunken, like he hadn't been eating properly. He was pale, the bags under his eyes dark and prominent, like he hadn't slept at all.

The ceremony was beautiful, dead silent the entire time.

No one knew what to say. And we had all cried ourselves out of tears.

And after it was over, the ceremony only lasting around half an hour, we all returned home, feeling just as empty as we had before we came.

(Neville POV)

I didn't want the kids to come home with me after the funeral. Arthur and Molly were taking them for the weekend, going to take them to do fun things. That's what they needed.

They didn't need the constant reminder that their father was dead.

I sat on the edge of the bed, my face in my hands, just trying to breathe.

It didn't _feel _like he was gone. I mean, he obviously wasn't here with me, but it felt the same as if I was at work and he was at home or if he had gone out with Daphne. It didn't feel like he was gone forever. Nothing had changed. I just… I guess I thought that it would hit me harder.

Now I was just trying to deal.

I turned over on the bed and buried my face in his pillow. The smell was already starting to fade, which broke my heart. It had only been a few days and he was already completely slipping away from me.

Then why the hell didn't I feel any different? Why did I feel like this, like he was going to walk in the front door any second with that big, beautiful smile on his face and kiss me, wrapping his arms around me? I had seen his body. Why couldn't I make myself believe he was gone?

There was a sudden clicking against the window, causing me to jump.

There sat an owl, one I had never seen before, a message tied to its leg.

Condolences from the Ministry, no doubt.

I stood, opening the window, and taking the message. The owl immediately flew off.

How strange. Usually the birds will wait for us to give some sort of indication of whether we were going to send a message back or not.

That definitely wasn't a Ministry owl.

My heart began to pound.

And once I read the message, I felt like I was going to be sick.

'_Don't forget that we are wizards. We attended school for seven years to learn all kinds of tricks and illusions. _

_Don't always believe what you see. _

_-V.S.' _

(Page Break)

So, I got this update up a little sooner than the other one (please don't hate me for that, by the way).

And just to address one of the reviews I got on the last chapter: I really do try to update often, but sometimes it's very hard to do so. I just graduated from high school (YAY!), so that was a crazy time, and I have a job that I work different mixtures of days and hours each week. But, now that summer's here (not that that helps my job situation), I'm going to try to update atleast once a week. I can't promise that, but I am definitely going to try. I wish I could be more specific, but I really can't. My life's not very crazy, but it can be inconvenient. BUT, this story WILL BE FINISHED, no matter what. Hope that helps! And I'm glad you guys are still loving it and following along and actually being affected by my writing. You really don't know what that means to me.

Reviews are Love!


	7. Chapter 6

(Val POV)

The water fucking hurt. It felt like a million knives slicing into my body at once, both from the impact and from the cold.

Forcing myself up and breaking the surface, I immediately noticed the "bodies" floating behind us. They were so realistic. It was disturbing, it made my skin crawl.

"Don't let him see the bodies." Montague had snarled at me. "You're in charge of getting him out of the water. He's mine after that."

But I didn't see the shock of blonde, other than the dead illusion, anywhere.

But, suddenly, he was right beside me, coughing and sputtering and choking.

Without giving him the time to catch his breath (what the fuck did I care if he died right here?), I reached and grabbed his arm as roughly as I could and began to drag him through the water after me, fighting against the current. He didn't fight against me or try to pull away. He just continued to try to catch his breath, grabbing on to my arm to steady himself as the water continued to splash over his head.

I was tempted to duck him under, just to watch him panic.

Following Montague, somehow way ahead of us, I knew we were headed towards the ends of the wards. Then it was to some shabby little location that Montague somehow managed to get his hands on.

He had big plans, plans that even made me a little hesitant, that definitely didn't stop with Draco. Draco was his celebration, his way of celebrating that we were out. But he had bigger plans for the little blonde. For everyone. Way bigger.

"Win him over." Montague had whispered as we made our way to his cell. "Make him believe that you want to take care of him, that you're just as much of a "victim" as he is. You'll bridge the gap. He'll never believe if I or Chris try it. It's only up to you."

And, fuck, did I dread pretending to play nice with the little bitch.

I heard men yelling back at the prison and realized that they were shouting orders, sending out boats.

They were collecting the bodies.

Oh, poor Neville, having to look at his husband's lifeless body.

Serves him right.

When I basically begged for mercy, when the little bitch clinging to my arm promised me sanctuary, and they both turned their backs on me, sending me to that hell hole for over _six years. _My life was over. They had destroyed it.

And now we were going to destroy them.

I felt a heavy wave of magic wash over me and realized we were outside of the wards.

I grabbed the blonde with my other hand and concentrated on the address Montague had given me, and felt the familiar pull behind my navel.

All at once, the water was gone. It took a second for the world to right itself, but my feet were flat on the wooden floor of the shithole apartment we would be staying in.

The small blonde still clung to my arm, shaking with cold and fear, and I shook him off, causing him to fall to the floor. He looked up at me with nothing but fear, tears welling in his eyes.

Good.

Two more loud cracks filled the small apartment and Darkboe and Montague made their entrance, Darkboe cackling like the crazed motherfucker he was, Montague looking down at Draco, a terrifying grin across his face.

"Leave the room. Now."

It was directed at the two of us.

I looked back down at the little blonde, seeing him pushing himself away from the rest of us, against the wall, looking like he just wanted to disappear.

"Montague, what are you-,"

"Get out of the room."

"We weren't… none of this was part of-,"

In two long strides the man was in my face, a terrifying snarl on his face. "Get the fuck out. Or I'll fucking kill you."

And we left the room.

But, more than the scream and the awful sound of a slap, the loud thud, everything, it was the shit-eating grin on Darkboe's face that disturbed me the most. It was the fact that he just looked so pleased with himself.

I blocked out the noises coming from the kitchen by turning on the small radio positioned on a old, dusty shelf. I had never heard the song that was playing and it wasn't really my type of music, but it was either that or static, so I left it on there.

"_And I don't want to see what I've done _

_To undo what has been done_

_Turn off all the lights _

_Let the morning come" _

Another scream reached my ears, cut short, and I turned the music up louder, closing my eyes.

"_Now there's green light in my eyes_

_And my lover on my mind _

_And I sing from the piano" _

I sat back in the ratty old recliner in the corner, laying my head back, closing my eyes.

"_Tear my yellow dress and _

_Cry and cry and cry" _

_Merlin, please just let me sleep. _

"_Over the love of you." _

(Next part)

The next thing I knew, I was jerked awake, the side of my face stinging.

Looking up, I saw Montague standing above me, grinning like the sociopath he was.

"Why the fuck'd you slap me?"

"You want a turn?"

"What? Raping and torturing someone? I'm okay."

"Don't be a pussy."

"Sorry. Didn't realize that's what qualified someone as a pussy."

"Chris enjoyed himself. Gotta say I did too. You know you've been asleep for a fucking while."

I groaned, my neck and back protesting as I sat up. I didn't miss Darkboe on the floor maybe ten feet away, dead asleep and butt ass naked. Fuckin' gross. "How long's awhile?"

"Few days. Give or take."

"Shit." I guess I was catching up on the sleep I'd missed when I was in prison.

Montague just chuckled.

"What's got you in such a damn good mood? I've never seen you when you weren't glowering at something."

"My plans working out. That little bitch is a sniveling mess in the kitchen floor, his husband's mourning his death with no idea what's truly going on, and I've got to carry out a _lot _of anger and frustration in the last few days.

"Now it's your turn."

"I told you I'm not into that shit. I'm okay with it happening to him, I just don't want to be the one to administer it."

"No, not that. Winning him over. Dammit, Sumner, stay with the program. You have to get him to drink the damn potion. It's already on the counter."

"Alright. Damn it. Fine."

"Hey."

I turned to look back at Montague in time to catch a ratty old throw he tossed to me.

"Win him over. That the only way this is going to get done."

I walked in the kitchen, noticing the glass on the counter, sitting next to the crystal phial. Picking it up, I noticed out of the corner of my eye a shape laying in the corner.

And looking over at it, I immediately wished I hadn't.

Draco laid on his side, curled in on himself tightly, not a stitch of clothing on his pale body, a mass of purple, black, and red.

_Oh, Merlin. _

I walked closer and noticed the way he was jerking, meaning one thing – one of them had used the Crutiatus on him. Recently.

"Draco?"

His closed eyes squeezed tighter. He pulled in closer on himself.

"Not you." He whispered, more to himself than me. "Please."

"Hey. _Hey. _I'm not going to hurt you. I promise."

And I couldn't. It wasn't part of my job description.

I gently wrapped hands around the blonde's arms, pulling him into a sitting position, apologizing as he hissed and grimaced at the pain I was causing him, just by moving him.

He was freezing. His ribs were beginning to become visible. He had only been here a couple days. He hadn't been eating right for a while to look that thin.

I looked at the ratty blanket I held. It wouldn't be enough to warm him up. I unbuttoned the Azkaban-issued shirt I wore and slipped it onto his pale arms, pulling it around him before wrapping the blanket around his shoulders.

He opened his eyes, looking at me in confusion, in slight fear.

I cupped his cheek with my hand, trying my hardest to be gentle. "I'm not going to hurt you."

And the fear in his eyes turned almost immediately.

He trusted me.

Maybe it was because he thought he knew me so well, maybe it was because so long ago he had been so in love with me, but he trusted me. He believed I wasn't going to lay a finger on him.

And I felt disgust. He thought he didn't deserve this.

It kind of turned my stomach to see what they were doing to him, to think they were so comfortable with doing it, but he deserved every second of it, just like that fucking husband of his.

I stood, filling the glass with water, ignoring the phial all together, and taking it over to him.

"Drink. You need it."

I held the glass to his busted lip, taking in the dried blood on his upper lip and chin, the cut next to his eye, the blood in his once white hair, and held it while he drank, gulping it down like his life depended on it.

Setting down the empty glass, I asked, "Are you okay?"

"No." His nose had to be broken. "Can I have some more water? Please?"

I filled up the glass again and let him drink.

"Why are you being nice?"

_Shit. Just come up with something._

"I'm only in this for the same reason you are. I needed a way out."

"But… you have a reason to want to hurt me."

"No I don't. I stabbed you. After you agreed to help me. I panicked. I won't hurt you. I promise."

Merlin, he thought that that was right, that he wasn't in the wrong at all!

"Sumner! What the fuck are you doing in there?"

"I'm doing what needs to be done, Montague! Mind your business!"

He only chuckled in return.

"I'm going to figure something out, okay?"

"Val. Please don't let them back in here." A sob left his throat. "Please. It hurts so fucking much and I feel like… I feel like I'm so close to losing my mind. Please don't let them do it anymore."

The sickness in the pit of my stomach spread a little further. Damn it.

He really did look bad. Like he was in a lot of pain.

That he earned. He earned it, damn it.

"I'll do what I can. I promise. And we'll get out of here. Soon."

I stood and turned to walk out the door, but was blocked by Montague's massive frame.

"Aren't you forgetting something, Sumner?"

"I just-,"

"Sumner. Feed him the fucking potion."

Looking back at Draco, I saw the fear ignite in his eyes.

"I just don't think right now is the-,"

I hit the floor before I realized he had socked me in the jaw, marching across the room and grabbing the phial himself. He stormed over to Draco who's eyes were once again squeezed close. He was muttering something to himself, silent, his lips barely moving.

Montague crouched down, his face directly in Draco's. "Drink the fucking phial and I won't snap your arm again."

Without hesitating, I jumped to my feet, going through the rest of the plan in my mind.

I ran from our room. This was a wizarding establishment. There was owlery on the roof.

My feet hit the stairs hard, turning on flight after flight until I threw open a wooden door, the cold hitting my bare skin in the same way the water had.

But sure enough, a group of rough looking owls stood hooting blankly on a stretch of chainlink just like Montague had instructed.

Grabbing a piece of parchment and a quill from the small selection set to the side, I scribbled my message as quickly as I could, letting the owl fly.

Longbottom couldn't be _completely _blindsighted. We'd give him a tiny heads up.

I walked back into our "suite" in time to hear Montague screaming.

"You fucking belong to us! Do you understand?! You do what I say, when I say it, you little fucking bitch! There's no way out this time." I heard a sharp slap and a cry of pain.

He looked up and saw me. "Where did you just go?"

"I… I was going to leave but-,"

"You can't." He stood and was in my face in a matter of seconds. "You have nowhere to go. Because I fucking own you too, you piece of shit."

He winked at me, congratulating me on a job well done.

Whatever. I don't need that fucking psycho's approval.

I still felt sick to my stomach.

Montague stormed back into the living room and I put my "sweet, innocent Val" face back on. It's not like it was the first time Draco had fallen for it.

Draco was sobbing, looking at me helplessly. "What did he just do to me? What did he make me drink? What am I going to do?"

I sat next to him, pulling him against me, my nausea reaching a new level.

_Whatever fucking powers that be, if there are any, give me some sort of sign that this is the right thing for me to do. Just to make my stomach stop feeling like this. _

Draco's hand grasped at my arm, squeezing as he sobbed.

"Please don't let them hurt me anymore. Please. I can't take it. I can't.

I felt like I was going to throw up.

_Fine. Fuck you, too, then. _

(Page Break)

This one was a little difficult. I rewrote it twice and I'm still not very pleased with it.

Hope you guys like it!

Reviews are Love!


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